1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a method for controlling starting operation of a unit, a method for executing a self-checking test of a unit, a control board, a device, and a checking system which are suitable for fabricating a wide variety of units.
2. Description of the Related Art
A great variety of devices now include a mechanical part, having moving parts, and a circuit section (circuit board) for driving the moving parts. Examples include a tape drive unit, a hard-disk unit, a printer, and other similar units. After power is applied to the unit at start up, these units enter a usable state after self-checking tests, such as initialization and test of the circuit section, operational test of the structural portion, and other tests have been executed. Such self-checking tests are executed based on a program stored in the read-only memory (ROM) of the circuit section.
In the process of fabricating the aforementioned units, predetermined tests are also given at predetermined points in the course of the fabricating process. The predetermined tests include, for example, a test of a single component and a test of a unit made up of a plurality of components (e.g., a test of a single circuit board and a test of a circuit board and a mechanical part combined with each other, respectively) and further include a test of a finished product.
It is possible to execute these tests by use of a dedicated test program from an external testing system after the completion of a single circuit board. It is also possible to execute the tests from a program stored in the circuit board itself (e.g., in the ROM of the circuit board).
The aforementioned self-checking test is normally executed during user operation of a unit in a finished-product state (hereinafter referred to as “normal operating mode”), and the tests employed in the course of the fabricating process will, if stored in ROM, represent unnecessary testing content that is not useful when the product is completed. If there is unnecessary test content, the tests will necessarily take time, resulting in a reduction in efficiency.
The present invention has been achieved in view of the aforementioned points. Accordingly, it is a primary object of the present invention to provide a method for controlling starting operation of a unit, a method for executing a self-checking test of a unit, a control board, a device, and a checking system which are capable of enhancing production efficiency in the fabricating process.